Local wildlife enthusiasts were buzzing Monday in response to video that appears to have captured another mountain lion in Griffith Park, which was long home to the famed P-22 “Hollywood Cat” until his death in December 2022.
A resident recently captured video of the lion while parking at his apartment building off Barham Boulevard. Vladimir Polumiskov told the Los Angeles Times he and his wife and son had just returned from dinner when they spotted the cat in his car’s headlights.
The sighting is still in the process of being verified by the National Park Service, which tracks lions and their movements in the Santa Monica Mountains. But fans of P-22 were enthusiastic about the possibility of Griffith Park welcoming another big cat.
“Exciting news!” Beth Pratt of the National Wildlife Federation proclaimed on X on Sunday after the news began spreading. “We have been getting some reports of a mountain lion sighted in Griffith Park. The (NPS) biologists have been alerted and are investigating.
“Please give the cat space if you see him — we are trying to avoid for now people trying to photograph him — lights and sounds from cameras could impact this cat’s behavior as we don’t know if he is as comfortable in front of the cameras as P-22,” Pratt wrote. “And even P-22 would avoid cameras as well. If you do see him, please let us know as this will help the researchers. He is not collared.”
If the sighting is confirmed and the cat is captured and fitted with an NPS tracking collar, it would be dubbed P-122, Pratt said.
J.P. Rose, urban wildlands policy director at the Center for Biological Diversity, called the sighting a “wonderful reminder that iconic pumas live among us, even in one of the most populated cities in the U.S.”
“Like P-22, this young cat has to navigate dangerous roads, development and poisons on the landscape to survive,” Rose said in a statement. “It’s good timing that state lawmakers are voting on two bills this week that would improve wildlife connectivity and restrict the use of deadly rat poisons. Let’s hope they use this opportunity to pass the Room to Roam Act and the Poison-free Wildlife Act so our wild neighbors can thrive.”
P-22 was long the face of the NPS’ lion-tracking project. He gained fame for persisting in the urban environment, and managed to successfully cross both the San Diego (405) and Hollywood (101) freeways to reach Griffith Park. He was occasionally caught on camera as he roamed through Griffith Park.
He was euthanized in December 2022 after a series of strange behavior that led to concerns about his health. Experts captured the cat and determined he was suffering from an array of health problems, leading to the decision to euthanize him.